Why do you ask about the goods value?

This question has repeatedly been asked by customers of transport services when I asked about the value of the goods to be transported. And since the question is asked regularly, I am going to give you the answer, dear customer.

We do not need the value of your goods for any statistics or to select a winner in some « most expensive goods » competition. We need this information to secure your business. Yes, that’s right – secure your business. Many things can happen on the route, such as accidents, which can damage or destroy the goods. Of course, the carrier will be obliged to cover these losses, but the question is whether they will be able to do it with their own funds within a time that is satisfactory for you. It is best when such a claim is covered by the Carrier’s Liability Insurance Policy. And here we have the first problem.

In the case of transport services provided in Poland, according to Art. 80 of the Polish Transport Law in the event of loss or damage to a parcel, the compensation amount may not exceed the goods value. If the customer gives goods worth EUR 500,000 for transport, and the carrier is insured only up to EUR 300,000, we have a potential problem of EUR 200,000. Such a difference will have to be pursued directly from the carrier since the insurance cover has a limit. For small and medium-sized enterprises, this amount can be difficult to recover.

As for international transport, Art. 23 of the CMR Convention limits the carrier’s liability for damaged or lost goods to SDR 8.33 per 1 kg of missing gross weight. What does it mean? The carrier will be obliged to pay the claim to the customer for damaged or lost goods only within the limits set out by the CMR Convention. This is better illustrated by the example below.

Goods value: PLN 350,000

Nous organiserons tout

transport en 45 minutes

ou moins

Notre employé préparera rapidement une proposition spécifique, et après son acceptation, il s’assurera personnellement que rien n’empêche la livraison à l’heure convenue.

Les commandes soudaines ne nous surprennent pas car nous sommes bien préparés.

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Goods weight: 5 tonnes

5000 kg * SDR 8.33/kg = SDR 41,650

SDR 41,650 * PLN 4.86/SDR = PLN 202,419

Difference: PLN 350,000 – PLN 202,419 = PLN 147,581

The example above clearly shows that the liability is lower than the actual value of the goods – the customer suffers a loss! Dear customer, in this situation the carrier should recommend a CARGO insurance to you. It is an insurance for the client’s property in transport, which protects goods up to the full sum insured. Thanks to CARGO, we could recover the difference resulting from limited liability.

To sum up, dear customer, the value of the goods exceeding the amount of the carrier’s insurance policy (in domestic transport) or the value of the goods exceeding SDR 8.33/kg (in international transport) without additional CARGO insurance will result in the need to pursue compensation from the carrier’s own funds (in domestic transport) or from the customer`s found (in international transport) . Therefore, always check the value of your goods and learn the limit of the carrier’s liability insurance before ordering transport, so that your goods are fully secured in transport.